Hamas govt says Israel strikes apartment buildings in Gaza refugee camp 2nd day

The Hamasrun government in Gaza says Israeli airstrikes have hit apartment buildings in a refugee camp near Gaza City for a second day in a row causing many deaths and injuries The toll from Wednesdays strikes was not immediately knownMeanwhile dozens of people with foreign passports entered the Rafah crossing from Gaza to Egypt It appeared to be the first time that foreign passport holders have been allowed to leave the besieged territory since the start of the IsraelHamas war more than three weeks agoCommunications and internet services were gradually being restored after the second major cut in five days according to Paltel the main service provider Humanitarian aid agencies have warned that such blackouts severely disrupt their work in an already dire situation in GazaThe Palestinian death toll in the IsraelHamas war has reached 8525 according to the Hamasrun Health Ministry in Gaza In the occupied West Bank more than 122 Palestinians have been killed in violence and Israeli raidsMore than 1400 people in Israel have been killed most of them civilians slain in the initial October 7 Hamas rampage that started the fighting In addition around 240 hostages were taken from Israel into Gaza by the militant group One of the captives a female Israeli soldier was rescued in a special forces operationLebanons caretaker prime minister said Wednesday that time is of the essence in stopping the HamasIsrael war from going out of control and affecting Lebanon and the wider regionNajib Mikati has been scrambling with international governments to keep Lebanon away from the war as militants from the Hezbollah group and Israeli troops have been clashing along the tense LebanonIsrael border since the onset of the war on Oct 7 The clashes so far have mostly been limited to areas along the borderHis comments come days before Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah is scheduled to give his first speech since the start of the war Lebanon is experiencing political paralysis and economic turmoil leaving many worried of the consequences of a fullyfledged war in the crisishit countryHe condemned both Israeli strikes in southern Lebanon and attacks in the blockaded Palestinian Gaza StripA humanitarian ceasefire for five days is necessary where there can be active international talks to secure prisoner swaps and reach a permanent truce in order to reach an agreement on the conditions for regional peace Mikati said before a government meetingIsrael and Hezbollah fought a monthlong war in 2006 that ended in a draw Israel sees Hezbollah as its most immediate threat estimating that it has some 150000 precisionguided missiles pointed at itEnough war in Lebanon for we are with the choice of peace Mikati saidHeads of Israeli universities sent a letter to colleagues around the world expressing deep concern over antiIsrael and antisemitic discourse at some universities following Hamass deadly attack on Israel and the war it triggered in the Gaza StripThe Association of University Heads in Israel also criticized what it sees as the inadequate response of some academic leadersIts unsettling to note that many college campuses have become breeding grounds for antiIsrael and antisemitic sentiments largely fueled by a naiumlve and biased understanding of the conflict the letter saidFreedom of speech is a cornerstone of academic freedom but it should not be manipulated to legitimize hate speech or to justify violenceTensions on campuses in the US and Europe have been inflamed since the Hamas attack Some students and faculty have expressed support for the militant group and its attackAt Harvard a coalition of more than 30 student groups said Israel was entirely responsible for the Hamas attack that killed more than 1400 peopleAt Cornell University police were sent to guard the Centre for Jewish Living over intimidating posts The comments have raised fundamental questions regarding free speech and its limitsJust as it would be unthinkable for an academic institution to extend free speech protections to groups targeting other protected classes so too should demonstrations that call for our destruction and glorify violence against Jews be explicitly prohibited and condemned the Israeli university heads said in their letterThis story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed agencies Midday accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability trustworthiness reliability and data of the text Midday managementmiddaycom reserves the sole right to alter delete or remove without notice the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever